Labor and employment-related bills are once again becoming
popular at the federal level. With less than a month before the
April 14 effective date of the National Labor Relations Board's
"ambush" election rule, and the same day the House
approved a resolution to try to stop the rule's
implementation, lawmakers are attempting to shape labor-management
relations through other means.
Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) on Thursday reintroduced a bill that
seeks to prevent the proliferation of so-called "micro"
bargaining units. The Representation Fairness Restoration Act (S.
801) would counter the Board's 2011 decision in
Specialty Healthcare, in which the agency adopted a new
standard for determining appropriate collective bargaining units.
Under the revised standard, if a petitioned-for unit consists of a
clearly identifiable group of employees, the Board presumes the
unit is appropriate. In order to prove that other employees should
be included in that unit, an employer
